by TS Paul
CONTENTS
Dedication
Legal
Series List
Social Links
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Author Notes - TS Paul
Author Notes - Michael Anderle
Chef Van Norman's Borscht Recipe
The Queen Is Back
DEDICATION
From Michael
To Family, Friends and
Those Who Love
To Read.
May We All Enjoy Grace
To Live The Life We Are
Called.
From Scott Paul
To my wife, Heather Paul
Alpha Class - The Etheric Academy Book 01
Team Includes
Beta Readers
Dorene Johnson (US Navy (Ret) & DD)
Diane Velasquez (Chinchilla Lady & DD)
Editors
Kat Lind
Stephen Russell
JIT Beta Readers - From both of us, our deepest gratitude!
Sherry Foster
Maria Stanley
Keith Kell
Wayne Johnson
David Williamson
Aidan Shanahan
Michael Pendergrass
Mark Katz
Philip R. Slocum
Brent Bakkan
Lori Harris Smith
John Raisor
Scott McDougall
Brent Smith
Brian Douglas Fennell
Lynn F. Ten Eyck
Ebhdoc Ebhdoc
Christine Stewart
Dean Agnew
If I missed anyone, please let us know!
Alpha Class (this book) is a work of fiction.
All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Sometimes both.
The Kurtherian Gambit (and what happens within / characters / situations / worlds)
are Copyright (c) 2016 by Michael T. Anderle
This Complete Book is Copyright (c) 2016 by Michael T. Anderle / TS Paul
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Michael T. Anderle.
Version 1.0
TS Paul
The Athena Lee Chronicles
Book 0 - The Lost Pilot
Book 1 – Forgotten Engineer
Book 2 – Engineering Murder
Book 3 - Ghost Ships of Terra
Book 4 - Revolutionary
Book 5 – Insurrection
Book 6 – Imperial Subversion
Book 7 - The Martian Inheritance
Book 8 - Infiltration
Book 9 - Prelude to War
Book 9.5 - Uncommon Life
Book 10 - War to the Knife
Ghosts of Noodlemass Past
Athena Lee Universe
Shades of Learning
Space Cadets (1st Quarter 2017)
Short Story Collections
Wilson’s War
A Colony of CATT’s
The Federal Witch Series
Book 0 – Born a Witch - Drafted by the FBI
Book 1 – Magical Probi
Book 2 - Conjuring Quantico
Book 3 - Special Agent in Charge (1st Quarter 2017)
Book 4 - Witness Enchantment (2nd Quarter 2017)
Night of the Unicorn (TBD)
Cat’s Night Out and Other Tales (Jan 2017)
The Etheric Academy
Book 1 – Alpha Team 01 - Team BMW
Book 2 – Alpha Team 02 - Jeo & Peter (2017)
Book 3 - Alpha Team 03 (2017)
Box Sets and Other
Chronicles of Athena Lee Books 01-03
Chronicles of Athena Lee Books 04-06
Chronicles of Athena Lee Books 07-09
The Federal Witch Book 01 Books 00-02
Michael Anderle
Kurtherian Gambit Series Titles Include:
First Arc
Death Becomes Her (01) - Queen Bitch (02) - Love Lost (03) - Bite This (04)
Never Forsaken (05) - Under My Heel (06) Kneel Or Die (07)
Second Arc
We Will Build (08) - It’s Hell To Choose (09) - Release The Dogs of War (10)
Sued For Peace (11) - We Have Contact (12) - My Ride is a Bitch (13)
Don’t Cross This Line (14)
Third Arc (Due 2017)
Never Submit (15) - Never Surrender (16) - Forever Defend (17)
Might Makes Right (18) - Ahead Full (19) - Capture Death (20)
Life Goes On (21)
**New Series**
The Second Dark Ages
The Dark Messiah (01)
(Michael’s Return)
12.25.2016
The Boris Chronicles
* With Paul C. Middleton *
Evacuation
Retaliation
Revelation Dec / Jan 2017
Restitution 2017
Reclaiming Honor
* With JUSTIN SLOAN *
Justice Is Calling (01)
Claimed By Honor (02)
Jan 2017
The Etheric Academy
* With TS PAUL *
ALPHA CLASS (01) Dec 2016
ALPHA CLASS (02) Feb/Mar 2017
ALPHA CLASS (03) May/June 2017
Terry Henry “TH” Walton Chronicles
* With CRAIG MARTELLE *
Nomad Found (01)
Nomad Redeemed (02)
Jan 2017
SHORT STORIES
Frank Kurns Stories of the Unknownworld 01 (7.5)
You Don’t Mess with John’s Cousin
Frank Kurns Stories of the Unknownworld 02 (9.5)
Bitch’s Night Out
Frank Kurns Stories of the Unknownworld 02 (13.25)
With Natalie Grey
Bellatrix
Anthologies
Glimpse
Honor in Death
(Michael’s First Few Days)
Beyond the Stars: At Galaxy's Edge
Tabitha’s Vacation
TS Paul Social
Website:
https://tspaul.blogspot.com
GoodReads and BookBub
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/t-s-paul
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15054219.T_S_Paul
Facebook Here:
https://www.facebook.com/ForgottenEngineer/
Michael Anderle Social
Website:
http://kurtherianbooks.com/
Email List:
http://kurtherianbooks.com/email-list/
Facebook Here:
https://www.facebook.com/TheKurtherianGambitBooks/
CHAPTER ONE
QBBS Meredith Reynolds
Bethany Anne was eating in the common cafeteria. Her area was a little offset from most, allowing a few feet of extra space for her guards to react. Marcus wasn’t frisked before he approached her table. “My Q
ueen, I mean Bethany Anne, may I have a moment?” Marcus Cambridge was a bit frantic, which got her attention right away.
She raised an eyebrow and set her tablet aside, “Marcus, what’s wrong?” She tried to avoid reading the minds of her oldest friends.
“What is this memo I just received about teaching a class?” He was holding out his tablet, shaking it, “I asked Bobcat but he was laughing too hard to tell me. Since it came from your office, I was hoping that you might be able to provide some answers.”
Smiling, she decided to break it to him ever so gently. “That is a reminder about the Etheric Academy. You are slated as one of the primary instructors.”
Marcus stood up straighter and looked from her to the tablet and then to her. “Academy? As in students? When did I sign up for that?” He looked back at the document, his eyes searching the words again for another clue.
Bethany Anne put her elbow on the table and laid her chin in her cupped hand, “If you remember, it was actually your idea, to begin with. We were laying out the basic outline for the Meredith Reynolds, and you said it would be great if we had some sort of science academy to train up our people. I took your basic concept and implemented it.”
She opened her arms wide, with a smile gracing her face and a gleam in her eye. “Surprise!”
Marcus’s face scrunched up. “I don’t remember saying anything like that.” He stood there a moment, “Damn Bobcat and his drinking parties!” He turned to her, a look of resignation on his face, “So, I have to lecture or something?”
Bethany Anne couldn’t hold in her humor any longer. She shook her head and laughed just a little. “Not quite. ADAM pull up the academy layout for Marcus, please.”
The wall behind Bethany Anne lit up with a full-color graphic design layout of the academy, built inside the Asteroid base, Meredith Reynolds. “We tested all of the children, both Wechselbalg and human alike. The tests were hard since TOM and ADAM came up with some of the questions. Only the best of the best were good enough for this first trial. They needed to already be excelling in regular school and have a desire to advance themselves for the greater good.”
She reached for her fork, “We had thirty students pass the first time.”
Marcus’s eyes opened wide. “Thirty? I have to teach thirty?” Marcus was starting to panic.
She put up a hand, “We have broken them up into groups of five. We mixed personalities and skills to make each group a possible working team. Using a block schedule, they will each spend six weeks on a topic or skill. What you will teach them is ultimately up to you. You will get them all eventually. But only five at any one time.”
“Oh. I guess there was a memo or something that I missed?” Marcus blushed a little bit.
“There was. Do I need to assign assistants down in the lab for you? Do not use the kids for that. I want them to learn stuff, not play ‘fetch the left handed wrench’ because it's funny.”
He nodded his head, his eyes getting his now infamous thinking look. “I think we can come up with some things to do.” He returned his focus to Bethany Anne, “What else are they learning?”
Bethany Anne shrugged and started counting on a hand, “Orbital mechanics, navigation, engineering, weapons and tactics, flight controls,” she closed the hand and started counting off again. “Logistics, space walking, computers and programming to begin with. We plan to add a few other skill sets as we go including genetics, negotiation, and survival.” She looked at him, “These children are our future. Remember, we will be leaving Earth behind. They need to learn these skills.”
He put up a hand, “Oh, I agree!” He looked to be concentrating on something. “This was really my idea?”
“It was. You wanted Tina to have a place to learn that didn’t involve Earth and NASA.”
Marcus started backing up, “Good ... I think ... OK, then. Thank you, my Queen, I can make this work.” He turned around and bumped into a chair, never seeming to notice.
Bethany Anne waited until the scientist was out the door before breaking out in laughter. She turned to her guard, “Did he really not know?”
John Grimes had a look of disbelief on his face. “I think Bobcat may have neglected to tell him due to some sort of bet.”
Bethany Anne cocked her head to one side, then slowly nodded her head. “Yes, that is what ADAM says as well.”
“That I can believe.” John turned around to stare at the academy layout. “Is everything ready to go, down there, for this?”
“They keep saying it is. Your niece was accepted, you know.” She stabbed at some green beans with her fork, “I have an obligation to make sure she gets whatever she needs to succeed.”
The large man nodded his head. “I remember. Too bad Todd didn’t qualify. He hasn’t completely come around to our way of thinking yet.”
“He’ll get there. Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum tell me he is obsessed with aircraft and spaceships right now. Maybe you can give him a nudge in the right direction.” She put a forkful of food in her mouth as ADAM and TOM bitched in her mind about her using Tabitha’s nicknames for Hirotoshi and Ryu.
“Maybe I can.” The big man stared off into space for a moment.
—
Checking the list carefully Tina placed each item in the bag.
She really didn’t need to check. When her mom told her about her acceptance into the Etheric Academy, she studied the information completely. The Etheric Academy was the brainchild of Queen Bethany Anne, Marcus, and two sisters that were rescued by the Guard several years ago.
Her mom had introduced her to them at one of the casual dinners those inside the inner circle occasionally had. They had worked to overcome Michael’s mental suggestions to forget the battle they had been a part of, which was pretty miraculous for regular non-upgraded humans.
“Tina, I don’t want you to go,” her brother admitted, playing with a pencil she had on her desk.
“You’ll get an invite too, Todd. We took the same tests together.” Tina’s brother was only now starting to come around to the fact that this was it.
Their future was in space.
He looked up to her, “I’ll miss you.”
Smiling at her brother, Tina gave him a gentle shove. “I’m just going to the other side of the Meredith Reynolds you know. It’s not like I’m going back to Earth or something!”
“I know that! It’s just…” He sat on her bed and hung his head.
Tina gave her brother another shove. “Cheer up, you get the whole room to yourself now.” The two of them shared a small room about half the size of a shipping container. Cheryl Lynn actually got one of the first apartments on the Meredith Reynolds to be built. She helped set the standard size limits.
Todd looked around the small room seeing the possibilities. He might be able to fit one of the new pod simulators in here. He would have to ask Mom first, though.
He spoke as his mind reviewed the possibilities in the new space, “Be careful over there. Some of those Russian kids are big.”
She shook her head, “I’ll be fine. They are trying really hard to fit in. You just have to give them a chance. I know you like Yurgi. I’ve seen you two discussing aircraft profiles and flight navigation mathematics.”
Todd turned his focus back to Tina, “That is different. Yurgi is just a little guy. He’s not like some of those really big guys!”
Tina shook her head at her brother. She wondered if his attitude might be what was holding him back. “Those big guys are Wechselbalg kids, so they are supposed to be a bit larger. You need to figure out what you really want Todd. Do you want to work for a living or lead? When you figure it out, that will be when the Academy admits you. Wait and see.”
She put the last item in the carryall bag and slung it over her shoulder. “Come on. Mom said something about a special dinner.”
The two siblings opened the connecting hatch door and resealed it behind them. The asteroid base was reasonably secure but safety procedures needed to be learn
ed. Better to learn them now, rather than when lives were on the line.
Sniffing the air Tina smiled. “Pizza!”
Coming into the kitchen area, Cheryl Lynn smiled at her two teenage children, “There you two are! Tina, I have your favorite for you.” Two steaming pizzas sat in the center of the small table in the dining area.
Cheese pizza done right was an exquisite experience. It was the purest form of pizza or at least that is what Tina believed. The two pizzas had a familiar odor, and she looked at her mom in shock then back to the Giuseppe’s boxes. Where the smell had come from … too many miles away to figure out, now. “How?”
